Focal Shape 65

Mostly heard as neutral and unhyped. Sound & Recording's anechoic response is smooth with a slight drop above the crossover, and SOS, Tape Op, What Hi-Fi, B&H and Reddit owners call it neutral or flat. A minority hear colour: bonedo describes slightly thick upper bass and an almost smiley balance, delamar finds voices a touch lean, SoundStage! Simplifi calls the sound forward, and a few owners hear a lump near 160 Hz or a bright, scooped balance next to DSP rivals.

“This is a monitor that, to my ears, possesses a naturally neutral overall presentation, making it both revealing without sounding overly clinical and easy to work on over long periods.”

Bob Thomas, Sound On Sound (1 m)

“The Shape 65 is neither overt nor hyped in sound, but is accurate as all hell for a mid-sized, mid-priced nearfield monitor.”

Tape Op #123

“Der Sound der großen Shape 65 ist schmeichelnd und zwischen den leicht dicken, oberen Bässen und den seidigen, präzisen Höhen so linear, dass man fast den Höreindruck einer Smiley-Kurve hat”

Patric Louis, bonedo ("The big Shape 65's sound is flattering, and between the slightly thick upper bass and the silky, precise highs so linear that you almost hear a smiley curve")

Tight, controlled and deep enough for most nearfield work, though not a sub-bass box. Sound & Recording measured −6 dB at 42 Hz and never missed a subwoofer at 1.5–2 m; SOS, SoundStage! Simplifi, delamar and many owners call the bass taut, dry and surprisingly extended for 6.5 inches. What Hi-Fi wants more weight and texture, MusicRadar says sub-bass fans will want a subwoofer, and two long-term owners find it short of deep extension or slow in the lows.

“I was immediately struck by the dynamics of the Shape 65’s taut, well-extended bass.”

Bob Thomas, Sound On Sound (1 m)

“There isn’t a huge amount of bass weight – Focal has evidently been keen not to overstretch itself and muddy up the rest of the balance – but what is there is punchy and tight.”

What Hi-Fi?

“the sub-bass junkies out there would definitely want to partner these with a subwoofer”

Joe Rossitter, MusicRadar

Sources split. SOS, Tape Op, What Hi-Fi and MusicRadar praise a precise, honest, detailed midrange that makes clashes easy to hear. Others hear the low mids as uneven: bonedo a bump around 200 Hz, an Audiofanzine owner a hump near 160 Hz, a Gearspace owner muddiness they cut by 3 dB on the rear bell filter — while delamar and a few owners hear the low mids slightly recessed instead. Desk and console reflections in this region are exactly what the 160 Hz knob is for.

Sources split. SOS hears smooth, open clarity, MusicRadar sparkle without metallic edge, bonedo silky highs, Tape Op a tweeter less fatiguing than most, and many owners never find it tiring. What Hi-Fi calls it sensitive and occasionally wearing, SoundStage! Simplifi heard brightness and a little hardness, and several owners find it hot or unforgiving — one sold their pair over it. Several owners also say it sounds stiff or harsh until the 10-hour run-in.

Wide and deep for a nearfield — SOS, Tape Op, delamar, Amazona and owners on Gearspace, Reddit and YouTube all describe a broad, layered picture. SoundStage! Simplifi found depth only moderate in a living room, and slightly shallower than the HEDD Type 07's.

“Sehr gut gefällt mir die Breite der Stereobühne.”

Felix Baarß, delamar ("I really like the width of the stereo stage")

“The space they draw is beautifully wide, and deep”

2046, Gearspace (owner, room 5 × 4 m, speakers 1 m from the wall)

“While the soundstage wasn’t particularly deep, the orchestral sound was beautifully transparent.”

Gordon Brockhouse, SoundStage! Simplifi

A highlight. SOS hears a very solid centre image, MusicRadar calls it second to none, Audiofanzine perfect, and owners on Thomann, Audiofanzine, ASR and Reddit single it out. bonedo found placement precise but a little smeared, and one blind test put it behind modified Yamaha and Genelec pairs.

“Stereo imaging is second to none.”

Joe Rossitter, MusicRadar

“they are ridiculously unbelievably pinpoint accurate in imaging in a nearfield situation”

dfuller, Audio Science Review forum (owner)

“The Focal’s however didn’t outshine the modified Yamaha’s and Genelec’s in the stereo imagining department.”

MaestroBeats, Gearspace user review (blind comparison with modded Yamaha HS8 and Genelec 8040)

Very revealing for the money — What Hi-Fi, SOS, MusicRadar and delamar all stress it, and owners say they catch mix errors faster and that poor recordings are exposed. bonedo, comparing with Mackie's XR824, found it less analytical and better suited to enjoyment than surgical work.

“For the money, these monitors are exceptionally detailed through the midrange and treble.”

What Hi-Fi?

“I'm catching mix errors a lot faster than I was before”

nulldevice, Gearspace (owner)

“klingen die Shape 65 nicht ganz so präzise und analytisch”

Patric Louis, bonedo ("the Shape 65 don't sound quite as precise and analytical" as Mackie's XR824)

Lively and loud enough for nearfield work. Sound & Recording measured 96 dBA continuous and 112 dB peaks at 1 m and heard no change in character at raised levels; SoundStage! Simplifi praises fast dynamics and fine microdynamics. What Hi-Fi found low-level dynamics reserved and timing its main weakness, and bonedo heard the Shapes compress near maximum level, though without distorting.

“Throughout my listening, I was struck by the Shape 65’s fast dynamics and forward sound.”

Gordon Brockhouse, SoundStage! Simplifi

“The main issue we have is with timing.”

What Hi-Fi?

“Ich habe den Eindruck, die drei Modelle 65, 50 und 40 komprimieren bei lauten bis maximalen Lautstärken”

Patric Louis, bonedo ("I have the impression that all three models compress at loud to maximum volumes")

Easy to place. With passive radiators instead of a port it can sit close to or against a wall — What Hi-Fi, Tape Op, Audiofanzine and many owners confirm it — and the low-directivity tweeter gives a wide, forgiving listening area. Close to a wall the bass does grow: SoundStage! Simplifi trimmed 3 dB on the bass shelf at a foot from the wall, and one long-term owner warns against corners. It must stand upright because of the side radiators.

“allow for your monitors to be placed right up against the wall without any boominess.”

What Hi-Fi?

“With the Focal 65s so close to the front wall, the bass was a bit prominent.”

Gordon Brockhouse, SoundStage! Simplifi (credenza, 1 ft from the wall; fixed with −3 dB on the LF shelf)

“Proscrire les angles dans leur positionnement : c'est un enfer de fréquences sélectives.”

Paul FRATTINI, Thomann owner review ("Avoid corners when placing them: it's a hell of selective frequencies")

Sources split, though most say mixes travel. MusicRadar, a B&H owner, several Gearspace owners and an Audiofanzine owner say what works on the Shapes works elsewhere. A long-term Gearspace owner stopped trusting its lows for aggressive music, and a Thomann owner in a treated room found translation to laptops and phones disappointing.

Quiet. Sound & Recording measured 20 dBA at 10 cm, delamar heard silence at the recommended 1 m, and a long-term owner hears no hiss despite the inputs running wide open.

“Bei der vom Hersteller empfohlenen Hördistanz von einem Meter ist komplett Ruhe.”

Felix Baarß, delamar ("At the maker's recommended listening distance of one metre there is complete silence")

“Even though these run all the way open, there is no audible noise or hiss coming from them, so that’s pretty great.”

Sir Freak (owner, after two years)

Sensible analogue tools: bass and treble shelving, a 160 Hz bell for desk reflections and a three-step high-pass for a subwoofer, which SoundStage! Simplifi found as useful at home as in a studio. Missing: a level control, a TRS jack input (XLR and RCA only) and any DSP or room correction.

“those rear-panel controls are as useful in domestic applications as they would be in the recording studio.”

Gordon Brockhouse, SoundStage! Simplifi

“Kein Lautstärkeregler”

Felix Baarß, delamar (its one listed drawback: "No volume control")

The auto-standby is the most repeated complaint. It cannot be disabled without opening the cabinet, it needs a fairly loud signal to wake, and at quiet monitoring levels it can drop out mid-session. The rear knobs have no centre detent, and with no gain control some interfaces need in-line attenuators. Adjustable feet for tilting are the welcome exception.

“In theory, it's a neat power-saving idea, but it is annoying in practice.”

Joe Rossitter, MusicRadar

“For very quiet listening (think night-time use) they will often go into standby even while a signal is being sent to them.”

Brandon, B&H verified buyer

“Extrem nervig ist auch, dass sich die Lautsprecher alle 30 Minuten von allein abschalten, wenn sie nicht einen hohen Pegel empfangen.”

einbewerter, Thomann owner review ("Extremely annoying, too, that the speakers switch themselves off every 30 minutes unless they receive a high level")

Sources split along the press/owner line. What Hi-Fi, delamar and Amazona find the build and walnut finish immaculate, and Sound & Recording's pair matched within 0.9 dB. Owners report a run of early faults: several 2017 units shipped with the internal auto-standby switch off (Focal's support confirmed it), one buyer returned a pair whose two cabinets sounded different, another had a unit stop working (fixed under warranty), and one noticed a backplate buzz at loud low tones.

Strong for the class. Sound & Recording gives an unreserved recommendation, MusicRadar calls it superb value, delamar says clearly better monitors cost half as much again, and Hugh Robjohns of SOS would pick it over ADAM's A7V. Audiofanzine notes it costs a little more than some direct rivals, and a Thomann owner would spend the money elsewhere.

“Zusammen mit Preis und Größe der Shape betrachtet, wird daraus eine uneingeschränkte Empfehlung”

Sound & Recording ("Taken together with the Shape's price and size, that makes an unreserved recommendation")

“They offer superb value.”

Joe Rossitter, MusicRadar

“Für das Geld würde ich andere Lautsprecher kaufen.”

einbewerter, Thomann owner review ("For the money I would buy other speakers")